


The Best Is Yet to Be

by InsertACatchyPennameHere



Category: Stardew Valley (Video Game)
Genre: Canon Lesbian Character, Canon-Typical Violence, Clearly my sense of time is wack, F/F, Harold They're Lesbians Meme, Hurt/Comfort, I wrote this ages ago, LGBTQIA themes, Lesbian Romance, Meaning it's mild and brief, Mild Angst, My poor beautiful readers, Nothing terribly spicy and no smut, Rated T for inneundos, Romance, Spending Lives Together, The Author Regrets Nothing, and said I'd post it after the original, and shortened version went up, but just to be safe, fluff fluff fluff, i love my girls so much, love is love is love, no beta we die like men, soft romance, very soft and sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-23
Updated: 2020-12-23
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:34:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28272462
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InsertACatchyPennameHere/pseuds/InsertACatchyPennameHere
Summary: A look at the nature of the relationship that exists between one shy, soft-spoken bookworm and a private, creative artist, as it evolves and becomes richer throughout the span of a half a century. [Penny/Leah are a power ship and so iconic that this became an entire independent one-shot to be posted.]
Relationships: Leah/Penny (Stardew Valley)
Kudos: 13





	The Best Is Yet to Be

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, my beautiful readers, and happy holidays! This story started as a prompt fill in my work "Twenty Seconds or Twenty Years", but this is expanded by over 5,000 words, and I am very excited and proud to share this with you in honor of the holidays and the good vibes of the season despite this year being a flaming dumpster fire overall! Enjoy! ♥

_ Nine _

“Hey!! Are you okay?”

Penny started at the sound of another girl’s voice, especially because it wasn’t one that she had heard before. She looked up from where she was knelt in the snow, her hands just barely clothed by the tattered mittens that were nearly too small for her to struggle into, and took in the sight of the well-dressed stranger before her. She looked to be around Penny’s age, maybe a bit older, and the first two things that hit the nine-year-old were that they both had types of red hair, and that this other girl was _incredibly_ pretty. While her own clothes were hard to fit inside and didn’t look like anyone else’s at school, this girl had on an outfit that looked even more fancy than anything she’d ever seen anyone else her age, with her gem-laced white coat and clearly fanciful name brands not at all hidden. This girl’s hair was gingerier than Penny’s, much longer, and definitely cleaner in its two braids that fell just past her waist. For the life of her, the smaller girl had no idea why someone like _her_ would want to talk to her, but she didn’t want to be rude, so she stopped her work digging into the frozen Earth and offered up a nervous, shy smile.

“Y-yes, I’m alright,” Penny offered up in a small voice. “Uh…T-thank you for as-asking?”

“Are you looking for something?” The other girl continued without missing a beat, tilting her head to the side and exposing more of her face from the massive scarf around her neck.

“I…” Penny hesitated, unable to stop the grimace when she thought about how furious her mother had been the couple of times she’d been careless enough to mention that she had to figure out dinner for herself more nights than not because of how the money was always spent on booze first. “I…I’m just looking to see if I can find any winter r-roots…Y-yeah! Yeah, I read about them in the library, and…I wondered if they tasted…good.”

“Oh, okay!” Thankfully, the other girl seemed to buy this easily, and stuck out her hand in offering to shake Penny’s. “I’m Leah! What’s your name?”

“P-Penny,” the smaller girl offered, accepting her hand with the same bashfulness and blushing more profusely when it was met with a very firm shake.

“Here, you can tell me how to look for the roots, and then I’ll help you!” Leah said eagerly, plopping into the snow right beside her and giving her a grin. “It’ll be an adventure just for us!”

Though she had no idea why someone so obviously _cool_ would want to help someone plain like her out, Penny nevertheless accepted and set about trying to explain how the ends of roots tended to stick up through the snow, and how the coloration of the ground could help show where other hidden artifacts could also be. Several minutes later, the two of them had found one lost book from the library (which Penny was particularly shocked by, as it was a classic she had been hoping to read it if it was ever found), three winter roots, a snow yam, and a couple of Joja colas that the two of them decided to drink together.

“I…I don’t mean to pry, but…What brings you to Pelican Town, anyway? I’ve never seen you here before, or in school…” Penny decided on asking as they sat side by side on the small, rickety steps that led into the entrance to her mother’s trailer.

“My father is from here! We’re on vacation!” Leah chirped, one hand reaching out and brushing stray hairs from Penny’s face with a tenderness that Penny had only experienced a few select times in her young life. “Mama and Papa are in the saloon over there, and I got bored playing pool with the grown-ups, so I came out here.”

“T-they…Y-your Mama and Papa drink, t-too?” Penny ventured in a moment of bravery that immediately summoned a hot sting of regret in her chest as the question left her lips.

“Hmm?” Thankfully, Leah seemed to be oblivious to the worse implications that were made in asking such a thing, and she simply tilted her head to the wide and blinked at her with those huge blue eyes. “Well, yeah, every once and a while. They’re silly when they’ve had a little too much!”

“T-they…they don’t get drunk, do they?” Penny’s voice was barely audible now, shame and fear making her feel as though she ought to simply bury herself in the snow and save her mother from the anger if she ever found out she’d been talking about it to other people.

Leah considered this for a long moment, then shook her head. “Nope! I mean, not that I know of, but sometimes they go out and let my stay with Nana and Pop-Pop, or Mamaw and Papaw, or my friends…Why? Do your parents do that stuff?”

Coming from Leah, the question was hinted with concern but mostly seemed to be from pure curiosity, which was a good sign to the nine-year-old shrinking into herself. Penny decided as much as she tried to sit up just a little straighter, tried to be brave so her new friend didn’t try and worry enough to talk to her parents about it. “U-uh…So-sometimes. Mama sleeps a lot when she does it, but it’s not…bad.”

It didn’t ever feel good to lie, especially not to the girl who had already helped her so much, but if Leah noticed she certainly didn’t let on. “Oh, okay! That’s cool, too. Mama says we gotta ‘respect other people’s life choices’.”

“Y-yeah.” Penny gave her a nervous smile, looking down to where their feet were resting mere inches apart and suddenly wondering what it might feel like to touch Leah’s hand. “Uh…Are your parents going to get worried about you? Or…or can you come inside?”

As if on cue, a small, curvy woman stepped outside and around to the side of the saloon, her own ginger hair blowing back from her face as she squinted in their direction. “Leah Renee! Come here right this second!”

Now it was Leah’s turn to blush brightly, hurrying to her feet and looking to Penny apologetically. “That’s my mama, I gotta go now…I’m sorry, I wanna play, I really do! Maybe Mama will let me come over before we go home?”

Penny smiled sadly, her chest aching as she thought of how she could never, ever let her new friend see the house while her own mother was home, especially not once it got all dirty again. “Y-yeah, maybe.”

“Here!” Leah suddenly unwound her scarf and slipped over Penny’s head, the thick, comfy fabric immediately cocooning most of the smaller girl’s face. “You can give that back to me next time we see each other!”

“L-Leah!” Penny squeaked in alarm, but a part of her that made her feel embarrassed was insisting she not protest the free winter gear, so she simply grabbed the other’s hands and gave them a tight squeeze. “T-thank you, Leah…Y-your mama isn’t going t-to…hurt you, i-i-is she?”

“Mama?” Leah blinked as if the very idea were something she’d never considered before, glancing back to her expectant parent before shaking her head. “No way. She may talk to me about not ‘scaring her like that’ or somethin’, but she won’t hurt me! My mama is the best mama in the whole world!”

Relief filled the gnawing fear that had struck Penny’s heart, and she gave the slightly taller girl a tight hug, murmuring that it definitely sounded like it before Leah rushed to meet ‘Mama.’ The small nine-year-old watched as the woman leaned down slightly to meet Leah’s eyes, how she put her hands on each of her shoulders without gripping and moved her mouth quickly, undoubtedly scolding her but not moving in any way to indicate violence. Leah lowered her head a bit and nodded, occasionally moving on her own lips, but then ‘Mama’ hugged her tightly and assured her. She then seemed to ask a question, and the two of their gazes suddenly turned to Penny, who immediately flushed and stumbled her way into her trailer with the treasures that had been found clutched securely in her own oversized, thin coat.

She certainly did not know it then, but that would be the last time she saw Leah for several years, but it was not the last time she saw her again. She made sure to keep her scarf well-loved and cared for every cold day thereafter.

**…**

_ Twenty _

“Have you met the new neighbor yet, Miss Penny??”

“I have not, but I am going to meet them as soon as I drop you two off,” Penny replied patiently as she walked her two students back to their homes. “Remember those muffins we had for lunch? I made a whole batch just for them.”

“Her!” Jas interjected helpfully from where she was clinging onto Penny’s arm. “Aunt Marnie and I went and met her yesterday! She’s super nice, and she even let me unpack some of her art stuff for her and put it on her shelves!”

“Oh, really?” Penny hummed, delighted at once that this new mysterious artist who’d just moved to Pelican Town was seemingly good with children. “That was very kind of you to do, Jas. I’m proud of you, and that gets you five star points for doing something considerate to others.”

“That’s not fair!!” Vincent, who had begun this topic in the first place, halted in place and looked up with teary eyes at once. “I haven’t got to even meet the new lady!! Mom isn’t taking us ‘til tonight!!”

“It’s alright, Vincent. I’m sure you can do something for her then, and then you’ll get five star points, too,” Penny interjected gently, reaching out and bringing the energetic, impassioned boy to her other side. “I bet you could draw her a pretty picture to welcome her to town. That would a very nice and considerate thing to do, and I bet that she would love it.”

“Really??” At once the tears were forgotten and Vincent was all smiles again, and Penny was left internally wishing that her life problems could be so calmly and easily solved. “Alright!! I’ll do that, Miss Penny, I promise!!”

“I am sure you will!” Penny gently encouraged. “Thank you both for wanting to do nice things for the new neighbor. I am sure it can be very scary to move to a brand-new place.”

“Mhm! Sam said he was so nervous when we moved here that he didn’t wanna talk to anyone for two whole weeks!” Vincent exclaimed with a solemn nod, which Jas reciprocated.

“Uncle Shane and I moved here when I was four,” the girl offered. “I’m going to ask him how he got comfortable again!”

“That also sounds like a good thing to do,” Penny mused as they came to a stop in front of the Morgenstein house. “Alright, you two. I want you both to ask your families what it felt like moving here, and that will be what we talk about in our journals next Tuesday, alright? Be sure to do your math sheets and read your chapters and be very safe this weekend. I look forward to seeing you on Saturday.”

“You too, Miss Penny!! Bye!!’ The two chorused, Vincent bounding into his home while Jas sprinted ahead toward her close-by ranch.

Once she was able to see Jas safely inside and to wave a hello to Marnie, who was out tending to the cows, Penny adjusted her tote bag anxiously on her shoulder and began trekking down toward the cottage that had just been built down on the riverside. She really hadn’t heard much about this newcomer other than she had never lived in Pelican Town before now, but she did have family who lived here before her, and that she was an artist who wanted to use the nature all around this little town to inspire her work. It wasn’t as though she was the first creative to come down this way for the same reasons, but she _was_ the first one in around twenty-five or so years who actually outright moved here rather than simply passed through. Shane and Jas had been the first new people to have moved here in nearly ten full years before now, so with the entire town buzzing as it had been leading up to this, it filled Penny with anxious doubt that she was socially distanced away from pretty much everyone enough that she barely knew _anything_ about this girl.

As she approached the cottage with her heart in her throat, she considered simply leaving the basket of muffins on the handle of the front door. Surely it wouldn’t be terribly long before this woman wanted to meet the rest of the town, and they were bound to run into each other eventually, so surely it would be alright to meet her then, right? Penny was quite sure she had nothing to truly offer this stranger unless she somehow had hidden that she had children, and she was beginning to feel properly foolish for trying to intrude on this new neighbor when she was undoubtedly up to her eyes with unpacking and trying to settle in. All of Pelican Town had surely been harassing her enough- and she’d just encouraged more of it, too! - so she was just about to go through with her self-deprecation fueled retreat when the door abruptly swung open and she came nose-to-nose with…

“L-Leah?!”

The young woman in front of her yelped and stumbled back slightly in surprise, her ginger hair now pulled it and twirled into a messy bun atop her head, her eyes the same blue as the depths of the ocean. Then she blinked once, twice, and her face brightened up with a recognition that was so sincere and eager that it did funny things to Penny’s rapidly beating heart.

“Penny!!” Leah exclaimed, throwing her arms around the still slightly-smaller girl and embracing her with all of the warmth she did back when they first met. “Oh my Yoba, how have you been?? It’s been…Yoba’s panties, what, nine, ten years?? Come in, come in!”

And then Penny was standing in homely cottage of the girl who had once come into her life as bright and as beautiful as a star, the girl she doubted she’d ever get to repay her incredible kindness to, the girl who was back in life and seemingly prepared to stay this time. As it turned out, Leah was an artist across various mediums, and she was every bit as enthusiastic and earnest as Penny had remembered her being all those years ago. ‘Mama and Papa’ were living content lives in Vexington, a state nearly nine full hours away from Pelican Town, and had evidently been and still were proud foster parents for several children for the past seven years, two of which they had adopted and three more that they were in the process of doing the same for. Leah, for the obvious adoration and closeness she shared with her parents, had come to Zuzu City to pursue her art degree and had met her now ex there. Breaking free from that ex is what led her to returning to the quiet town that had made such an impression on her when she was nearly eleven years old, a fact that delighted and intrigued Penny beyond what she felt she was able to properly put into words. When she’d given her the poppyseed muffins, Leah responded extremely positively (unlike the children, both of which had either politely not finished theirs or outright said they weren’t very good) and even gave _her_ a portion of the pound cake that Marnie had made for her before they exchanged social medias and phone numbers, promising several times to each other to keep in touch.

As Penny made her way back to her trailer nearly two full hours later, she had a feeling that something significant had truly begun with re-meeting her old hour-long friend, but she couldn’t quite discern what that was.

**…**

_ Twenty-One _

“I’ve lived in Pelican Town my whole life. Can you believe that?” Penny said one day to Leah, because Leah had been telling her all about the places she went as a girl and as a woman and it felt remarkable that she herself had never so much as been on a proper vacation.

“I think it’s a little more normal to have been in one place rather than to bounce around all the time because your mom was in the military before she got hurt,” Leah supplied casually, turning over a couple of overturned pinecones with her foot and delicately but expertly plucking out the fruit that they had been partially concealing. “I can hardly believe this orchid has been empty for all of these years! There must be enough here to make a real living!”

Penny decided that this was not the time to bring up the silly pipe-dream she’d begun to have about buying this property and tending to these trees, maybe even having a proper farm in time with someone she loved. “I suppose there’s a lot out there I’ll never experience.”

“Nonsense!” Leah exclaimed, turning to face Penny properly and giving her a crooked, shyness-tinted grin that brought out the pinkening of her cheeks. “Next time I have enough saved up to start travelling this country and beyond again, I’m taking you with me, Miss Barnett!”

“Is that a promise?” Penny teased, because surely her good friend can’t be serious.

“Absolutely!”

Leah then began to scale a tree to pluck some apples free from the branch that they were bending in half with their weight, and Penny thought that she just may hold it her to it if that time ever did truly come.

**…**

_ Twenty-Two  _

A young man named Elliot Quincy moved onto the beach in the middle of October for reasons that Penny cannot quite explain. He was a rather shy man, a few years older than she and Leah, and she gathered from Sam and Leah that he was a writer hoping to finish his novel. She had tried on more than one occasion to bring him a cake, but he never seemed to be home when she arrives there, and the one time she did catch him outside with her baked good on hand he looked so profoundly sad and deep in thought that she decided it best to leave him be.

At the evening’s Dance of the Moonlight Jellies, she noticed that Leah seemed to have an ability to talk to him unlike anyone else in town. The two of them spent most of the evening together, chatting away from the majority of the crowd and even sharing a dance or two with the music that Sam was DJ’ing before the jellies were set to arrive. A few times, Penny looked over to them and saw them laughing so heartily and with so obvious disregard to whoever else may be there that it made her begin to feel ill and an fresh type of sorrow, one that seemed to permeate her very bones and soul, that she had never felt aside from worrying about her ever-alcoholic mother.

Penny decided to spend the rest of the evening out with Jas and Marnie.

**…**

_ Twenty-Four  _

‘I want to take you out tonight, be ready in an hour and a half’ is what Leah had texted her an hour and twenty minutes ago. Penny hadn’t had any real plans for the evening- what else was new, she’d thought with ever-persistent tug of self-deprecation that plagued her constantly- so she had spent this time showing, shaving, and even putting on the makeup that she had bought the containers of three years ago and hardly worn since. She was putting her wavy locks into their usual two braids to be tied into buns on either side of her neck, but then she stopped, her appearance in the mirror hardly what she had grown to expect when she caught glimpses of herself. Her face looked alive with the makeup, all of which was carefully applied via the few things her mother passed onto her when she was younger and the rest from YouTube, and she was even wearing something new and stylish; a royal-blue dress that reminded her of Leah’s eyes, one that was held on each side of her shoulders and descended down her with it’s eloquent-looking fabric and fake but pretty jewels that brought out her waist, just underneath her bust, and her neckline. Something usual with her hair against such an ensemble simply would not do!

When Leah arrived in their driveway exactly when she went meant to, Penny tried not to fall all over herself to greet her in the doorway. She hoped internally that her dear companion would like what she’d ultimately decided to do with her hair, which involved her carefully curling it in an intentionally loose fashion before pulling it up into a high ponytail, which she completed by making mini-braids of her bangs that were pinned into the main ponytail holder. Despite her best attempts, she could not help the small audible gasp that escaped her lips when she took in the sight of one of her closest friends in the universe in all of her glory. The ginger-haired beauty was particularly captivating tonight in her sea-green dress that went all the way to her ankles, the fabric loose down most of her body but hugging in just the right areas, and the opening between the base of her neck and her bust was just lengthy enough to be naughty but not extremely sensual. Some of her curls were contained in a bun on the top of her head, but the rest of them flowed freely down just past her shoulder blades, and her face had hints of light makeup as well, as though Penny had not been the only one desperately hoping to impress.

“You are positively radiant tonight,” Penny breathed before her anxiety could get the better of her.

The way Leah beamed at her now sent the butterflies in her belly into a frenzied swarm, but they were cooled with remarkable speed when said best friend took her hand, as she often seemed to, and gave her a wink. “You are absolutely exquisite tonight yourself, Miss Barnett. Shall we?”

“We shall,” Penny said with faux royal overenunciation to mirror Leah’s initial question, the two of them immediately dissolving into giggles as they made their way toward the brand new theatre on the other side of town.

The movie, which was a historical coming-of-age piece that was phenomenally acted and beautifully made, had them both in tears at two separate points (even despite Penny knowing the fate of each sister that the story was centered on.) They were, much to Penny’s relief, able to laugh at the destruction their feelings had reaped upon their make-up, and the two of them stepped outside to find Sam’s car nearby the door with the headlights on. Penny was intending to say a quick hello and then ask Leah what they were going to do for dinner, but much to her surprise, Sam hopped out just to open the backseat door and gesture for them to climb inside. Leah, with her usual level-headed certainty, thanked him with a theatrical curtsy before climbing inside and extending her hand immediately to Penny.

“Sam here as agreed to drive us to dinner,” Leah elaborated when she was met with Penny’s open-mouthed stillness. “He’s a good friend, this one.”

“I had no idea the two of you even knew each other!” Penny exclaimed, unable to hide or prevent the massive grin now making her cheeks ache a bit as she hurried to sit beside her fellow redhead.

“It turns out that Leah is super into music, too! She bought our CD at our first concert!” Sam announced as he hopped back behind the wheel, talking excitedly about his band and making innuendos that almost sounded to Penny like he was insinuating that she and Leah were more than ‘just friends’, but before she could have him confirm or deny these things they were parked at Cindersap Forrest and Leah was pulling her out by the hand and thanking Sam again for ‘all of his help’ before he drove away with a massive smile of his own.

“Goodness, what was all of that-?” Penny began to ask, certain now that she was certainly the last to know about something going on between two of her closest comrades, but she gently cut off by Leah’s finger over her lips before she noticed a glowing light coming from the nearby lake.

“Trust me,” Leah prompted, as though she would ever need to ask for it, and the two of them walked arm-in-arm until Penny could clearly see the beautiful setup that had been mostly concealed by a set of homemade curtains, ones that the two of them had actually dyed together, hanging from the most massive tree in the area.

It was certainly all a mystical sight to behold. Fairy lights were wrapped around the surrounding trees, their lights illuminating the otherwise inky blackness of night, while solar-powered outdoor lamps were pushed into the soft dirt leading to the pier. On said pier, a hand-carved round table sat in approximately the middle, and one chair sat the top center and bottom center of said table, respectively. A feast of food for two was all set up on the fairly sizable table, and to top it all off, there were two towels sat on the very end of the dock with swimming suits that looked like their own.

“L-Leah…” Penny had no idea where to begin to vocalize her thoughts. Once again, her dear companion simply smiled, excusing her from asking question as she stood before her, her body illuminated beautifully by the ever-so-slightly twinkling lights.

“I have had the privilege of being your friend for fourteen years,” Leah said, her voice strong with confidence but soft around the edges with deep sincerity. “And I have had the honor of being a close one for the past three or so. I…I read somewhere once that the person that you think about first when you wake up in the mornings, and the person that you think about right before you go to sleep at night, is the one that you love the most in the world. For the past few months…Well, that person has been _you._ I know that you know that I’m a lesbian, a-and you’ve kind of been questioning your own sexuality ever since you and Sam broke up…Well, around the same time I started getting this feelings really strong, honestly. I’ve always r-really, _really_ liked you Penny, and…Well, I would be incredibly honored if you would give me the chance of becoming m-more than…just your lady friend.”

“Oh, Leah…” Penny whispered as tears of joy mixed with astonishment that this was really, truly happening to her, so much like she’d always dreamed she would one day be asked to be someone’s partner. “I’ve felt the same way about you f-for…Yoba, I imagine s-since we first met! A-and you look so beautiful tonight, I…”

She gasped softly as Leah began to close the space between them, her dear companion’s arms circling around her to rest at her lower back, and Penny did not hesitate in enveloping their lips to each other’s.

**…**

“Well, well, well…What do we have here?”

She might not have recognized the voice that cut through their serenity of the date that she and her girlfriend were on, but Leah clearly did by the way she jumped and tensed her muscles immediately. Behind them stood a woman who looked to be around their age, her hair long, brown, and straightened, and her wardrobe consisting of a full three-piece suit that left little to the imagination with how it embraced her frame. Leah’s expression, which had been content if not full of joy most of the day, was now cloudy with anger, and it was clear to Penny at once that her love had certainly not been expecting this guest.

“Kel?!” Leah demanded in a strong voice, one that did not give away the uncertainty she surely felt now. “What in Yoba’s graces are you doing here?!”

“I’ve come to take you back, my Princess Leia!” Kel proclaimed, giving absolutely no acknowledgement to Penny has she walked forward with her arms spread out in front of her. “I’ve missed you so damn much, Lei…It has been a very long three years.”

“How did you even find me?!” Leah crossed her arms over her chest once she stood up to properly face her toxic ex-partner. “Didn’t I make it clear to you back then that I don’t want anything to do with you anymore?”

“Baby, don’t be like that!” Kel insisted, though she did not cease advancing toward them. “Look, I tried to pressure you into something you weren’t ready for; I get that now! Please believe me when I say that your love changed me, and it changed for me for the better. There has been a huge gaping hole in my heart ever since you left me, and I have known for the past two years that I needed to find you and woo you back into my arms. Didn’t you notice me at your little art show a few weeks ago? I came all the way just to see you, and now I’m here to take back what’s mine once and for all.”

“First of all, I am not _yours_. I don’t belong to anybody except myself,” Leah snapped, her tone sharp and commanding despite how she seemed to be drawing into herself physically. “Second, even if I weren’t a happily taken woman, I would not go back to you. What we had wasn’t healthy! It wasn’t was either of us needed at the time and that hasn’t changed, especially because of how you _still_ talk about my art like it is just a side hustle or silly hobby. Third, and most importantly, I _am_ very happily taken, so you wasted your gas and resources to come here. Go home, Kelsey, and don’t come back or talk to me ever again!”

“Babe, don’t agonize me like this-!” Kelsey began, but Penny had heard more than enough of the audacity shown by this woman and quickly put herself between her girlfriend and her clear enemy.

“She said she does not want to talk to you!” Penny said as strongly as she could, internally cursing at how her voice still quaked and a chill ran up her spine when the other woman glowered fiercely at her while maintaining direct eye contact. “Listen to her and just leave!”

“Oh, look, poor little Orphan Annie is here to defend her ‘special friend’,” Kelsey sneered, a cruel gleam in her eyes as she marched up to get in Penny’s face. “I just _loved_ going through _your_ pathetic little accounts too, Penny Barnett. Your life is so fucking pathetic that you can’t even live in a real house, and your father probably left because your mother is too much of a drunk to even try and coddle your sniveling ass. Do you _really_ think Leah would ever want to stay with someone like you unless it was just out of pity? Please!”

The only way for Kelsey to have known all of that was if she was one of the followers she added to her most private lists, and that meant that she had somehow been under the radar for months. These epiphanies along with the unforgiving sting of the insults brought tears to her eyes and made her feel like she was only a few years old again, her heart breaking into millions of glass shards as her mother told her everything wrong with her as well as what an ungrateful brat she was. Before she could fully fall apart, though, Kelsey was yanked away from her, and Penny just had enough time to turn her head to see Leah’s fist connecting with a loud _Pop!_ to her attacker’s face.

‘Kel’ immediately dropped like a sack of grain, and Leah swiftly grabbed Penny’s hand as she gasped sharply in shock and felt as though she may faint. “Come on, sweetheart, let’s get out of here. I don’t think she’ll be bothering us again.”

Penny felt numb as she was led away, but the feeling was swiftly overtaken by the feelings of offense, anger, and jealousy that she felt toward this absolute lunatic, so she planted her feet, pulled Leah back to her firmly, and made quite a little show out of kissing Leah with fierce passion directly in front of the person who ruined their date. Thankfully, Leah seemed to catch on nearly immediately, and the two of them reveled in a make out for a minute or two before finally taking their leave. It took a great deal of reassurance thereafter to both of them that lashing out in violence was absolutely a one-time occurrence, a bit of ice to Leah’s hand, and a lot of kisses and tears from both of them, but both of them were eventually not worse for wear despite the intensity of Kelsey’s invasion, and said invader never did bother them again.

**…**

_ Twenty-Six _

“…I now pronounce you wife and…Well, wife! You may kiss.”

Penny was not sure she would ever be in such absolute bliss as she was in the moment that she was able to kiss Leah, _her_ Leah, her _wife_ , beneath the alter. A cry of joy erupted from the crowd over the sound of Pam ugly-crying into a handkerchief, Marnie’s singing of a traditional wedding song immediately following it, and both women could not help but laugh and begin to join in as confetti (biodegradable, of course!) erupted from the specialized devices set up on the surrounding buildings and balloons (also eco-friendly) were released into the air. Leah grinned at her the way she had when they first met, her laughter the most beautiful sound in the world as they embraced as wives, their mutual rocking a kind of improvised slow-dance as they relished in the feeling of being in each other’s arms as full-on spouses.

“I didn’t get the chance to tell you this beforehand, but I really love how you have a suit incorporated into your dress,” Penny murmured into her wife’s ear, referring lovingly to suit-like corset and coat tails that were expertly sewn into the pale green wedding gown Leah was wearing.

“And I love how airy and floofy yours is!” Leah murmured as reference to Penny’s gown, which had a tulle base and a train that was embellished with real bits of diamonds (curtesy of Clint and their local farmer/miner/fisherwoman), with a mischievous giggle. “Though I must admit I am looking forward to see you without it~”

“At least contain yourself a bit until after the reception!” Penny giggled herself, her blush simply a manifestation of her absolute elation and more internal desire for much of the same. “I would like to enjoy our poppyseed cake first, Mrs. Barnett-Coleman!”

Leah hummed softly, giving her another impish wink before planting another passionate, warm kiss on her expectant lips. “Whatever you say, Mrs. Barnett-Coleman.”

**…**

_ Twenty-Nine _

It had, admittedly, been extremely hard to wait these three years for Leah to be ready to begin expanding their family, but Penny was fueled by the assurances that her wife would eventually be willing as well as her absolute determination to not be anything like horrid wench of an ex of her wife’s. At long last, her most treasured love was genuinely ready, even excited to be beginning their journey into parenthood, and was waiting with just as bated of breath as they received a notification letter from the adoption agency they’d applied to around a month ago.

“T-they…” Penny’s own hands were trembling too much to be able to hold and read the paper, so she held on tight to her Leah instead with her face pressed against the back of her shoulder as her wife read the news. “They…YOBA’S GRACES!”

Before she could even begin to ask what that meant, Penny was swept up in a tight embrace and a long, passionate kiss. Unable to allow herself to get too caught up in the speculation, she pulled away long enough to whisper, ‘So…I-it went through? W-we were approved??”

“WE’RE GOING TO BE PARENTS!” Leah outright squealed with unabashed delight, and Penny immediately began to laugh and cry simultaneously as she scrambled to continue their kiss of victory and joy.

…

_ Thirty-Four  _

“We’ve come pretty far, haven’t we?” Penny remarked with the kind of sleepy bliss that could only come from leading a day where they seemed to largely get it right, coupled with the fact they led largely happy lives overall.

“Let’s see~” Leah drawled, her arm finding its usual place around her as she snuggled up against her chest and shoulder. “Two wonderful children, a massive, blossoming garden, a once cozy cottage that we transformed into a real home, and I’m married to a beautiful, kind, virtuous woman who is also the love of my life…I would say we certainly have, my pretty like watermelon.”

Penny giggled and leaned up to kiss her, their hands sliding all over each other’s bodies as they snuggled into their bed and soaked in the joy that came from having active intimate lives. Both of them silently knew that it would only be so long until Jeremiah, their active, thoughtful, and sensitive five-year-old, padded in to snuggle away the bad dreams, or Sylvia, their sweet but fussy seven-month-old, cried out, but they never had any real issue with taking what time they had and making more than the most of it.

**…**

_ Thirty-Five _

“Love of My Life? I’m worn out from teaching today,” Penny said with exaggerated fatigue in her words to conceal the same kind of jittery excitement she’d felt when she realized that Leah was just as eager to call her hers. “Would you mind making dinner?”

Poor Leah looked as though she’d had a long day herself, especially with the paint still splattered on various spots of her skin, but she gave her a smile that did little to make her heart stop trying to beat right out of her chest. “Of course, sugar. What would you like?”

“Hmm…Maybe something baked in the oven?” Penny mused, trying her damndest to be casual. “Oh, shoot, I think I might have left the skillet in there, though…”

Immediately Leah went to check, and when she opened the door to potentially pull the offending device out, she simply found an almost comedically large bun inside instead. The slightly older woman pulled it out with her mitts as if just to be safe, inspecting it with absolute confusion on her face before looking up for explanation from her wife. Penny had no sooner grabbed the pregnancy test from her apron than she saw the pieces connect in her lover’s mind, an action that was swiftly followed by a sharp gasp and Leah swiftly fumbling to free her hands from the mitts and bread.

“Yo-you’re pregnant?!”

Penny, not trusting herself to speak with swell of emotions in her throat, simply nodded earnestly and laughed through her elated tears as Leah embraced her and danced around with her, whooping and cheering. The two of them had been trying to use donors for the past two years in an attempt to have a child of their own using three exceptional men who’d agreed to be donors, one of which was their very own dear friend Elliot, and it had finally, _finally_ worked. It had been nearly impossible for Penny to keep the secret for the week that she did, but now her lady (and probably most of Pelican Town) knew, and their beautiful, joyous family was growing yet again.

**…**

_ Forty-Seven _

Simply put, it would be difficult enough to raise six children, even with consideration that each of them were loved fiercely and perfectly imperfect members of the family, but raising two teenagers, a preteen, twins and a toddler felt impossible a solid 65% of the time.

“Jeremy, you have to get up _now_ ,” Leah’s voice commanded strictly from upstairs, her tone causing their much more sensitive six-year-old, Emily, to bury her face into Penny’s torso and hug on tightly to her. “Everybody else is behaving, and you are not going to get out of spending time with us just because you stayed up too late.”

There was undoubtedly a reply- probably grumbled out by their eldest son- that lead to his door creaking with her wife going in to speak with him more privately. Penny sighed silently to herself; Jeremy was not a generally misbehaver, but he was like all teenagers, and just as stubborn as his Mama when he’s upset. For her part, Penny gently smoothed down their six-year-old girl’s auburn hair and pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

“Everything is alright, little one,” she reassured verbally when the girl’s wide dark green eyes met her own lighter-shaded ones. “Mama is just making sure Jeremy is okay and is going to do what we need him to. Now, what would you like for breakfast?”

At her sweet girl’s request, she prepared a nice bowl of oatmeal with syrup and fruit, setting it down on the table before fulfilling the requests of the other children who hadn’t already eaten. Auguste, Emily’s twin, always enjoyed dishes with more meat than anything else, and settled in with a bowl of cheesy scrambled eggs with pre-crumbled sausage, and the preteen of the family, Connie, had the same as her little sister, though with the requested additions of chocolate chips and a whipped cream smile, which Penny was, of course, happy to provide. For her part, newly fourteen-year-old Sylvia had a couple of sizable muffins from a pre-made package, and their youngest, Vincent, had been having a grand time in his booster seat with dry cereal. After several more minutes, Leah reappeared coming down the stairs with a rather grumpy-faced Jeremy, whose sour mood didn’t entirely transfer to his voice as Penny fixed him up with more of the breakfast she’d prepared beforehand for Auguste.

“Thank you, my love,” Leah said softly into her ear, her arms wrapping around her middle lightly and her lips pressing to the curve of her neck. “What would I do without you?”

“What would I do without _you_?” Penny crooned in response, lovingly pressing their faces together and briefly closing her eyes in these moments of calm. “Thank you for getting him up and ready.”

“He was up talking to a friend who was having a difficult time. I told him that we would get him some coffee one we’re there and that he’d be welcome to nap on the drive to the city,” Leah murmured, and Penny received the message loud and clear as she nodded in quick agreement.

The rest of the day consisted of the family of eight loading up into their car after eating to go to the Zuzu City, where they would be doing some Winter Star shopping. Of course, the two mothers could hardly shop for their own children when they were all accompanying them, but it was still productive to do the buying for the rest of their mutual family and their friends, and it was nice to help their younger kids’ pick out things with their budgets while helping them keep the secrets of it from each respective mom and their siblings. This was naturally not without the usual expected hiccups of having such a large family on a group outing- Vincent had a couple of tantrums, Auguste had to be given a time-out for getting disrespectful when he was told they weren’t buying toys for them that day, Jeremy and Sylvia squabbled once, and the younger kids had to take naps in the car while Penny and Leah tried to keep the older ones entertained quietly while going to stores meant for their ages. By the time both other meals of the day had been eaten by all and they arrived back at home, then, both Penny and Leah were completely exhausted and aching fiercely from all of the activities, and wasted no little time in doing the children’s nighttime routines and tucking them into their beds before practically collapsing on their main couch.

“What I wouldn’t give to go soak in the spa right now,” Leah groaned, perfectly vocalizing what Penny was secretly hoping for in her mind.

“I agree,” Penny said with a fatigued sigh. “But we cannot leave them all alone here, even with Sylvia and Connie likely to be awake a bit longer. We know they’re sleeping, but still…”

Leah then sat up, a twinkle in her eyes. “It isn’t terribly late, and besides, we know his sleeping hours well; why don’t we ask their Uncle Elliott to bring himself and his writing over here for a while?”

“Do you really think he will be willing?” Penny asked, though she so fiercely hoped her wife was right.

Indeed, she had proved to be, and soon they two had driven the relatively short distance to the spa and were in the showers to clean off the day’s grime and get into their swim suits. Penny’s heart still fluttered with delight and absolute awe of her partner, who was wearing a one-piece suit that was an ombre-rainbow color and that even had a complimentary bow sewn-into the middle. Unlike her own body, which had changed after two pregnancies and had become less attractive in her own mind, Leah’s was still relatively well-preserved from the years, and not full of the same stretch marks and weight that she had put on. Nevertheless of her own persistent insecurities, Leah grinned massively at her at once, trailing kissing all over her own one-piece clad body and murmuring compliments about both her general beauty and the beautiful mint green that the pool clothing was.

“You are a regular romantic, my beautiful rainbow,” Penny crooned, bringing her spouse up eventually for a full, proper kiss that they so rarely got to enjoy fully away from prying eyes. “Shall we?”

Leah gave her a grin full of mischievous affection and nodded. “We shall, my perfect watermelon.”

As it would be incredibly rude and inconsiderate, they of course did not do anything other than making out within the spa, and both of them ended up dozing off a few times as well, but in general, the break was well-deserved and well-enjoyed by both, even as they eagerly returned to check in on one of their mutual best friends and babies.

**…**

_ Fifty-Four _

With their beloved children all nearly fully young adults, Penny had found herself with a lot more time to focus on herself and her wife. Focusing on Leah, of course, was absolutely no issue, as they both had far more ‘good days’ than ones with miscommunication and hurt feelings, but her own self-image had remained low, ranging anywhere very extremely bad to somewhat-but-not-very-decent. Even more so, the toll it was taking on her was very, very difficult to ignore these days, and it was even affecting her relationship with her spouse, who wanted her to see herself in the way she did.

All of that born in mind, then, it is while the two of them were spending an evening at home with their remaining living-at-home kiddos when Penny brought up the notion she had been considering. “I’ve been thinking about getting some therapy for my self-esteem, and…to ‘process’ my traumas fully. I…I don’t _think_ it’s all had really negative bearings of my parenting, a-and hopefully not on our marriage, but…I think…it would be really healthy and good to do for all of us, e-especially me.”

“That’s a fantastic idea!” Leah responded enthusiastically, earning her a ‘pink’ Penny, and the smile across the darker-red haired woman’s face when the ginger adoration of her life continued. “If it would make you feel less alone, I bet I could benefit from something like that, too. We could go to our appointments together, but still probably with separate therapists, if you want.”

“Yes, absolutely!” And despite how joints ached that didn’t used to and the occasional challenge that walking brought, Penny did not hesitate in going to where her love was painting something and sweeping her into a hug, then a tender kiss.

**…**

_ Fifty-Nine _

“Hey, would you like some help?”

Penny smiled brightly up to her Leah from where she was knelt in the wet dew of early morning, her hands covered in dirt as she carefully pulled a perfectly ripe melon from its’ vine. “I most certainly would.”

The two of them worked as one to finish completing the morning chores that they usually alternated on- tending to their gardens and feeding their pets- before doing a little morning meditation together in order to keep their limberness and spirits centered. It was the day before their well-loved and upstanding eldest daughter, their Sylvia, would be married to the love of _her_ life, and Penny could not help but reminisce again that it had nearly been fifty whole years since she first met the person who she would go on to love so fiercely and so truly. Leah seemed to be thinking the same thing, as she gave her a smile before sliding something cool but light into her hand from where it had evidently been in one of her vest pockets.

“I want you to wear this tomorrow,” her Leah said as she admired with awe the beautiful string of emeralds, all of which were on a sterling-silver chain that would go beautifully when the dress she had picked out. “And one more thing, Penny…”

“Yes?” Penny asked, already knowing the answer but loving how the phrase they’d both grown to love exchanging half as often as they did kisses and hugs.

“Grow old with me?” Leah requested knowingly like the adorable dork she was, leaning in for a kiss immediately, which Penny just as readily accepted.

“But of course, my darling,” Penny murmured against her lips as they held one another with the certainty that they would never truly let go. “The best, after all, is yet to be."

**Author's Note:**

> Please remember to leave kudos/bookmark/subscribe/leave a review if it so compels you! ♥


End file.
